UVSIGNAL · Unravelling the mechanisms underlying the evolution of ultraviolet signals

Unravelling the mechanisms underlying the evolution of ultraviolet signals

Animals signals constitute the backbone of animal social interactions and their study has greatly advanced our understanding of animal evolution, ecology, and ecology. To become evolutionarily (ESS) stable strategies, signals must confer net fitness benefits to both senders and receivers and this condition can be achieved only if signals are honest, at least to some degree. To ensure that signals are honest in the face of deception, various mechanisms have been described, and perhaps one of the most widely known is costly signalling theory. It posits that a cost is associated with signal expression and prevents low quality individuals to signal high quality. These costs can take several forms, such as physiological costs associated with signal production/maintenance, predation costs as signalling may attract predators/parasites, or social costs that conspecifics impose on dishonest individuals, thus maintaining signal honesty. Colour signals frequently reflect individual quality traits and can be either pigment-based, structural, or both. Research on chromatic signals has long focused on pigment-based colours and as a result we now have a good understanding of the maintenance mechanisms underlying the honesty of some these signals. However, how structurally produced colour signals, such as ultraviolet (UV) signals, became ESS still is an open question because the mechanisms enforcing their honesty remain elusive. The over-arching aim of this project was to investigate these mechanisms and costs to improve our understanding of the evolution of colour signals. More specifically, this project aimed to investigate the costs associated with UV signal expression in male common lizards (Zootoca vivipara) using a combination of field studies and experimental approaches. Male common lizards are ideal study models because they have a UV patch on their throat that reflect their quality as mate and rival. Animal coloration and communication have always be a source of inspiration and awe for many people across space and time, including scientists, naturalists, or artists of all kind. To protect and preserve this diversity, one needs first to understand how it came to be, and this project has contributed in this sense.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union